Our stories

Building a just society means elevating everyone by supporting all people to reach their full potential. Every success story is crucial because none of us can flourish, until we all do.

Christmas message of hope
- 22 December 2015
The stories of Christmas tell us how the lives of simple people collide with the exactions and the cruelties of kings. In Luke’s Gospel a pregnant Mary must make a long, hot journey so that the Romans can make a census for taxation purposes. Her journey ends and her care begins with the birth of…
International Migrants Day (December 18)
- 18 December 2015
International Migrants Day usually comes as a placid reminder of the contributions that immigrants make to our national life. It merges easily into the Christmas celebrations with their emphasis on universal good will and peace. This year, however, the celebration of migrants has a touch of defiance. In Europe political parties that oppose immigration have…
Global challenges, networking responses
- 14 December 2015
Following the “Networking for Justice” meeting that took place in Loyola, Spain, from 16-20 November, our Chief Executive Officer Julie Edwards travelled to Madrid participate in a roundtable discussion organised at Comillas University on 23 November. The event, titled “Global challenges, networking responses”, was chaired by the Rector of the University, Julio Martínez and the…
International Human Rights Day (December 10)
- 10 December 2015
For any government, human rights can often be a nuisance. When people protest against breaches of human rights, they criticise the actions of their government, try to prevent it from doing what it wants to do, hold up its plans and give it a bad reputation overseas. So the Australian Government, like many other governments,…
Day of People with Disability (Dec 3)
- 3 December 2015
Carparks bring out the best and worst in people. Most carparks thoughtfully leave special parking spaces for people who are disabled. Most people respect them. But others without a disability often squat in the reserved places. And people who can walk only short distances, but have no outward signs of disability, are sometimes abused when…
The power of love
- 19 November 2015
The massacre in Paris has been deeply distressing. It is about human loss. So many people have lost their lives. So many will have lost their robust good health. So many now weep for husbands, wives, children and friends. People in Paris and elsewhere have lost their confidence that, when they walk the streets, they…
Networking for Justice
- 17 November 2015
Jesuit Social Services’ CEO Julie Edwards has joined 60 delegates from around the world in Loyola, Spain to attend the ‘Networking for Justice’ meeting from 17-20 November. The meeting will bring together members of the five Global Ignatian Advocacy Networks, including migration, right to education, ecology and governance of natural resource, as well as other…
Great Australians Gala Dinner
- 16 October 2015
Jesuit Social Services was proud to welcome more than 300 guests to the National Gallery of Victoria’s Great Hall on Saturday night for the second annual Great Australians Gala Dinner. The event featured a who’s who of Australian identities from the worlds of politics, sport, entertainment, academia and law including Gold Logie winner Daryl Somers,…
Anti Poverty Week (October 11-14)
- 12 October 2015
The symbol of anti-poverty week to which we are accustomed has come to be the gathering of CEO’s of large companies sleeping out for a night. It is an encouraging image of a concern by people whom life has privileged for those who are disadvantaged. It also speaks powerfully of our common humanity. This year…
Time to end the Pacific Solution
- 5 October 2015
Fr Frank Brennan SJ AO, Jesuit Social Services board member, has called on Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to close Australia’s offshore detention facilities. Addressing the Melaleuca Refugee Centre in Darwin on 29 September, Brennan said there is no longer an excuse for “maintaining the chamber of horrors” that is the Pacific solution at Nauru and…